Bug Of The Month March 2013: Mantisfly

Subject: Another Strange Florida Bug
Location: Apollo Beach Florida
February 28, 2013 9:41 am
I took this photo a few months ago in Apollo Beach Florida. The bug was on a second floor window of a model home in a new development. Any ideas as to what it is?
Signature: Curious Marc

Mantisfly

Dear Curious Marc,
Congratulations on being selected our Bug of the Month for March 2013. This is a Mantisfly or Mantispid, a predatory species in the family Mantispidae. There are several genera represented on BugGuide, and because of the silhouetted image, we aren’t certain of the classification, but we strongly feel this might be a member of the genus Dicromantispa which is also represented on BugGuide. Though they resemble both Mantids and Wasps, Mantisflies are not closely related to either group.